Few car company bosses can afford to be more relaxed about high oil prices than Honda (HMC) chief Takeo Fukui. After all, the Japanese automaker’s hard-earned reputation for fuel efficiency means that whenever there’s a spike in prices at the gas pump, more auto buyers will think about buying one of its cars, BusinessWeek.com reports.
Toss in the benefits of a well-honed “green” image at a time when global warming is a hot topic, and an enviable record for quality,Honda is the leading mass-market automaker in J.D. Power’s study of initial quality,and it’s no surprise that Japan’s No. 2 automaker is scrambling to raise production capacity around the world. (Like BusinessWeek, J.D. Power is part of The McGraw-Hill Companies (MHP).)
Speaking at a wide-ranging press conference in Tokyo on July 18, Fukui outlined Honda’s plans to increase global production, consolidating the company’s position as the world’s ninth-largest automaker. “To support booming sales, production facilities are being expanded,” Fukui told reporters.
